Fidget Spinners – Ride a Trend or Build a Business?

I have a friend who just dropped a few thousand dollars on Fidget Spinners from China. He got a real good deal on ’em a few weeks back. Problem is, a few weeks back they were selling for $10-15 each locally and online. I know because my kids bought a ton of them.

Now, they’re down to five bucks at the local gas station. I know because my kids bought a ton of them.

My kids also bought some from my friend, who’s now selling them at $7 a pop, down from $10. And the ones he sells are pretty special because they have flashing LED’s in them so they’re cool.

They’re also utter and complete garbage. One came without batteries in the LED’s so my friend had to replace that one with a new one. Then they all started to fall apart and my friend kept swapping them out for new ones.

Ultimately, he gave my kids their money back and told them to take a hike.

My friend, when the trend abates, is likely to take a bath on these fidget spinners because they’re garbage – not even worth what he paid for them wholesale.

To be fair, my friend is a musician who makes extra money with a side-hustle of selling stuff at fairs and mall kiosks, that sort of thing. He’s only in for a few thousand, not a few hundred thousand. Still, though, it got me thinking…

Chasing Trends or Building a Business?

Here at Opus Marketplace, we spend a lot of time thinking and talking about building a business that you love. Our mission is to make life better for business owners and entrepreneurs.

Watching my friend take a big gamble on the latest trendy toy, and lose, made me think maybe he isn’t in love with that idea.

It’s sort of an assumption on our part that we’re talking to people who are in for the long haul – that building something with value and staying power is their primary aim. Unless you’re involved in the toy business, fidget spinners, pet rocks (one of the brightest marketing ideas ever, BTW), hula hoops, etc, may not fit into your business plan.

Now it’s entirely possible to build a trend-chasing business. Don’t think for a second I’m saying it’s not. But from my perspective, it’s a roller coaster ride. And, hey, I used to love roller coasters. Now that I’m a little *ahem* longer in the tooth, I don’t care for ’em so much. I prefer a nice, steady uphill ride. And I’m looking to build something that pays dividends for many years into the future, with concentrated effort.

Perhaps more importantly, what we’re trying to do here is to build a business where we love to come to work. After all, business consumes roughly half of our collective waking lives.

Bonus: Fidget Spinners Can Make Music, Too!

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